The orthodox monastic life is
characterised by temperance, careful use of goods of nature and
tenderness for nature conservation. The ultimate criteria for the
use of natural resources is the symmetry between the needs and the
use of goods, time and space and the preservation of spiritual
peace. The limits of monastic life should serve nature
conservation.

To accomplish the above there are written rules dating
back to the foundation of the monastic community of Mount Athos,
rules that clearly prohibit all actions that can alter the balance
of nature.

Forest management is not an exception. Since 972 AD
there is a very strict rule which limits the commerce of wood
while later on other rules allowed for the exploitation of forests
only for the needs of the Holy Monasteries.

Today, despite the great needs of the Holy Monasteries, the monks,
following the tradition of the monastic community for “order”
and “sustainability”, manage the forests with great respect
and love for nature, using the knowledge of the elder monks as
long as methods and techniques proposed by modern science.